Having "Me" Time

I can hardly believe the year is almost over already.  In just a few days it will be December and along comes with it Christmas, parties and New Years...Today I write about a quote that has been stuck in my head for weeks and believe it or not, it comes from Kung Fu Panda 2. (I know it's an animation, but I have to say I think the creators did a lovely job of not only graphics, but the plot and content is also quite thought provoking. ) "It does not matter what your past is, but what you will do with your future." Master Shifu said something like this (I don't remember the exact wording) to Panda when teaching him about "inner peace."  Despite Panda's success as a Dragon warrior Master Shifu says one needs to achieve "Inner Peace." Inner peace is essential for without it, in the face of danger one can lose one's grounding and fall flat on one's face.   Inner peace stablizes us and lets us stand ready for whatever happens next, ...

The other day I had a chance to go to a temple unlike others in that the monk does not simply chant the buddhist prayers during the funeral, but instead he'll spend roughly half an hour teaching us some of the philosophies in plain language for all to understand.  I think it's great and I although the journey there was long and the journey back included wading through the flood and having my car at times turn into a boat, a lot of interesting thoughts remained in mind.  So much so I thought it'd be great to share a little of it here with you today.  It's about anger. Now we humans all have emotions. We feel happiness, sadness, fear, anger, jealousy and a zillion other feelings.  Sometimes we feel more than one at the same time and cannot quite distinguish which is which.   Sometimes they get the better of us and start influencing our actions. It's how we control those emotions though that make all the difference.   The monk's ex...

On holiday one goes to so many sites within the space of one day that after two days you feel like you've seen so much, experienced so many things and nourished your senses.  Yesterday I went to visit Nara, founded in 710  as the first capital of Japan and it is definitely a site not to be missed.   There are eight Unesco Heritage Sites in Nara alone and the best part is that a lot of them are within walking distance (though make sure you have comfortable shoes.)  I like it because it doesn't have the large bustling atmosphere of a modern city.  I can feel its history in the air. The main sites are located in Nara Park which is an area so large you would probably need an hour or so to walk around. Being someone who loves to just soak in the atmosphere of the place, I took longer, much longer. I spent at least two hours walking around.   I couldn't help but just stand and look at the large wooden columns that towered over the entrance of the Todai-ji Temp...